Independence of the judiciary has been destroyed: Khaleda

Dhaka-BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday described the ruling Awami League as a party of militants and said the country would be safe, if their (AL’s) leaders and activists are detained.She made this comment while speaking at an iftar mahfil organised by a portion of Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) at Supreme Court Bar Association auditorium.
The former premier further said militants would be caught if they are detained as they (AL-men) possess huge quantity of arms and ammunition.
Terming the AL government unelected and illegal one, she said if they have dignity they have feelings of shame they would have quit power and held an election.
Khaleda alleged that there is no independence of the judiciary and it has been destroyed by politician. Thus, people have no confidence on judiciary, she added.
She said her government had caught militants but the AL does not do it. “They are grabbing all including lands and homes of the people. None is safe to them,” she said adding that they also grabbed Jatiya Press Club.
The BNP chief alleged that about 15,000 people were arrested in the name of curbing militancy but there is no real criminal. “They were arrested only for arrest-trade. Of the arrestees, about 3,000 people are BNP leaders and activists,” she said.
“Whatever the government is doing they have no validity. The present government is following the previous Fakhruddin-Moeenuddin led caretaker government,” she said.
Khaleda regretted that the Fakhruddin-Moeenuddin led caretaker government had filed 15 cases against AL president Sheikh Hasina and 12 cases against me. But she (Hasina) withdrew all the 15 cases against her but my cases were kept in operative. She termed it as biased trial.
She alleged that detaining people by plainclothes people was not stopped even after the High Court directives and said people are being killed frequently in the name of crossfire after detaining them by plainclothes people.
She reiterated that whatever is doing in the name of gunfight is not crossfire; it is killing and said the Prime Minister and the Home Minister are responsible for the killings.
Khaleda said journalist Shawkat Mahmud was released after detaining him in the prison for 10 months without any offense.
She demanded immediate release of journalists Shafik Rehman and Mahmudur Rahman saying that they were also kept in the prisons similarly.
She called upon all including journalists to get united to restore democracy.
BFUJ and DUJ organized the iftar mahfil at the Press Club but later they changed the venue as they have no prior permission to use it.
Presided over by BFUJ president Shawkat Mahmud, the function was attended, among others, by BNP leader Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, Barrister Jamiruddin Sircar, vice-president Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, Prof Emajuddin Ahmed, Naya Diganta Editor Alamgir Mohiuddin, News Today Editor Riaz Uddin, former president of SCBA Khandaker Mahbub Hossain, Barrister Mahbubuddin Khokan, BFUJ secretary general M Abdullah and DUJ secretary Jahangir Alam Prodhan. -STAFF REPORTER